Saturday, December 4, 2010

The traditional reporter of fantasy, Aya Shameimaru, dropping in! One of Griffon's earlier Touhou figures that I was able to obtain through Mandarake. The box itself isn't that special, but from what I've seen none of Griffon's boxes stand out that much. I did find this amusing though

I only collect mature figures made for mature collectors like myself.

Aya's pose is fairly simple, but the crow perched on her arm makes her stand out quite a bit. A nice bonus was that Griffon decided to add Aya's trademark camera along with her. It's attached with string and according to the box art, this is how you are supposed to hang it. At first glance, I couldn't see any real flaws, but I did notice some after a detailed inspection. It's not like I was feeling her up and happened to see minor errors or anything!

Hmm, not very pretty. the area where her hair pieces connect doesn't look that great, but the real fugly lies in where the red piece comes out. That area isn't smooth at all, but it isn't too noticeable...right? There also seems to be a strange black line on Aya's right arm. I thought I may have caused it when putting on the crow, but I don't remember letting the crow slip at all. Speaking of the crow, it was very easy to attach to Aya.

The crow looks surprisingly good. I didn't expect it to be that detailed, but I'm not complaining. The area where its legs attach to its body could use some work, that's about it. The crow's position is a bit slanted compared to the official pictures. Its eyes are also red to match with Aya's. Aya is also one of the few characters to make several appearances and to keep her original eye color. Seriously, take a look at Alice. Blue, green, yellow, what's next? I know she's the seven colored puppeteer, but this is getting ridiculous. In Touhou 7.5 and 10.5 her character portrait had yellow eyes while her sprite had blue.

Red Eyes Black Dragon

Griffon loves pink nails.

An alternative way to position the camera and a shot of it's backside.

Those famous Tengu high heels. The white lines are a bit uneven, but nothing major. The holes to attach the figure into the base are in the clear pieces. They're attached to the shoes and you can't take them off. Well, I haven't tried because they seem to be stuck onto the figure really well.

What a sexy name plate.

SHUTTER CHANCE~

Aya Shameimaru by Griffon Enterprises

+Nice sculpt/paint job

+ Crow/camera are detailed

+ Easy to use accessories

+ Dat nameplate

- Few imperfections in the hair/under her skirt

- Clear pieces are stuck to the figure

- Camera is a bit out of place

I consider Aya an excellent addition to my collection, but I may be biased due to my affection towards her. There's a few up for sale on Mandarake, just search for 射命丸. A figma version of Aya also comes out in January if you want to wait for that.

I was pondering on if I should include shots of what's under her skirt and I guess I should. I did mention there's a bit of minor quality problems under there, but rest assured it's only on the under side of the skirt. Nothing else. I guess I'll use that photo that Aya took earlier. It should have developed by now.

Didnt notice the imperfections until you pointed them out lol. The red line is a bit weird though and so it the mark on her arm. Could try and use the crow to cover up the mark on her arm I suppose but would be annoying. Seems like an awesome figure alltogether though!